Presumed Democratic nominee for president, Joe Biden, put out an advertisement talking about the economy and healthcare while framing President Donald Trump as a divisive leader.
The advertisement opens with a voiceover saying, “Right now, we’re at a crossroads. We’ve seen what happens when we elect a leader determined to divide us.” The spot flashes to a video of President Trump without mentioning him by name, then shows protesters being dispersed.
The audio continues, “As president, Joe Biden will forge a new path by growing an economy that works for working families, getting small businesses back on their feet, and expanding access to affordable healthcare. Joe Biden will lead us on the path forward paved with opportunity for us all.”
A YouGov snap poll asked 1,000 registered voters to watch Biden’s political advertisement and share their opinions on its tone. All voters were asked to put aside their own political affiliation while evaluating the clip. About three in five (64%) registered voters considered the ad’s tone as positive, and 16 percent thought it was negative. About half of voters overall called the clip inspiring (53%) and honest (48%). About one-third (32%) thought the video was dishonest.
Republicans were particularly likely (68%) to say the commercial was dishonest, much higher than the number of Republicans who said that about Biden’s (43%) earlier July advertisement, “Tough.” They were also less likely to classify the “Crossroads” advertisement as positive (36%) when compared to the “Tough” advertisement (43%). Despite that, watching the Crossroads video improved Republicans’ views of Biden (8% to 16%) at a similar margin to the Tough ad (6% to 13%).
After watching the advertisement, positive opinion of Biden increased 7 points among Independents (47% to 54%), 6 points among registered voters overall (51% to 57%), and two points among Democrats (89% to 91%).
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Related: How voters view Donald Trump’s political advertisement, “Break In”
Methodology: This article is based on a flash poll of 1,000 registered voters surveyed via YouGov Direct on July 30, 2020 between 12:00 p.m. and 1:16 p.m. This YouGov Direct Poll was weighted according to age, gender, race, education, and 2016 presidential vote. The margin of error is ±4.2%
Image: Getty
